Come in while our selection is still amazing!

FAIRY GARDEN CLASSES

Thursday, May 30, 2013 from 10:00 - 12:00
Fresh Floral Fairy Arrangements Workshop
Come and make your own fairy arrangement; we provide all the elements and inspiration to create a magical miniature flower arrangement Cost $45.00 plus tax. Limited to 10 artisans!

Thursday, May 30, 2013 from 12:30- 2:30
Permanent Botanical Fairy Gardens Workshop
Come and make your own fairy silk flower arrangement; we provide all the elements and inspiration to create a magical miniature silk flower arrangement. Cost $75.00 plus tax. Limited to 10 believers!

Thursday, June 6, 2013 from 3:30 - 5:30
Children's Fairy Garden Workshop
Children ages 8 -18. Come and make your own fairy garden; we provide all the elements and inspiration to create a magical miniature growing garden. Cost $45.00 plus tax. Limited to 30 fairy lover; fairy dust included!

Thursday, June 13, 2013 from 10:00 - 12:00
Adult's Fairy Garden Workshop
Adults age 19 to infinity! Come and make your own planted fairy garden; we provide all the elements and inspiration to create a magical miniature park like setting to entice Fairies, Nymphs, Brownies, Leprechauns and Gnomes. Cost $50.00 plus tax. Limited to 40 gardeners

If you have the space and nice sunny spot, then melons are a must. The lushness and sweet flavors are some of the rewards of patience you can get from a melon. Splurge for some prosciutto and the quintessential summer appetizer is yours. Here are just a few delicious types you'll see available at Orchard at some time during the planting season.

Delight of the Table: This rare French heirloom was first listed back in 1885. A hard-to-find treat and practically extinct! Very thick, pumpkin-like, ribbed rind is orange and chrome yellow when ripe. Muskmelon-like flesh is pale orange, intensely sweet and soft. The 5' plant has good yields of 2-3 lb. melons. 85-90 days.

Delicious: Sweet, 6", round melons on medium-size vines and heavy setting make this cantaloupe very desirable for the home garden. Salmon pink flesh with sparse netting on the skin. 80-85 days.

Jenny Lind: Named for a popular singer of the era, this heirloom was known before 1840, and possibly originated in Armenia. The small turban-shaped melons have lime green flesh -- juicy and delightfully sweet.

Green Nutmeg: An heirloom (c. 1863) with a uniquely spicy, sweet flavor and aroma! Reliable, high yields of fragrant melons weighing 2-3 lbs each. The dark green skin is deeply netted while the flesh is light green with a salmon center. Yummy!

Charentais: This is a gourmet type from France with renowned wonderful flavor. Very fragrant -- one ripe melon will perfume an entire room! Medium size, round fruit, silver-grey skin with green stripes. Sweet, aromatic, thick orange flesh. 75-80 days.

Hale's Best Jumbo : An heirloom favorite that old timers swear by! 'Hale's Best' produces large, aromatic melons with sweet salmon-orange flesh. Tan skin is finely netted. 6" diameter melons weigh up to 5-6 lbs with a small seed cavity.

Crane: A local (Santa Rosa) heirloom developed in the early 1900's by crossing several varieties including a Japanese melon, a white melon, a Persian melon and an ambrosia melon. Round fruits average 4-7 lbs, with a light orange flesh. Exceptionally sweet, juicy and highly aromatic! Rarely seen in the market!

Melons need soil rich in organic material and 2-3 feedings of a fertilizer until the first melons are set. Water should be steady and deep during the growth season, cutting back during ripening period.

Here's a picture of Anne, the Lazy K Buyer, checking out a booth at the Brimfield Antique Fair in Brimfield, Massachusetts. She'll be coming home soon with a suitcase (or maybe 2 or 3) full of carefully chosen items from her trip to the fair. Stay tuned for more details.

Get patriotic with a festive wreath or silk arrangement, fill a blue bowl with red strawberries, picnic with red checked napkins, set a table with a white linen tablecloth.  We can help you celebrate the holiday in style.

Look no further for summer activities for the children in your life and the young at heart. My Nature Journal is a delightful and creative personal nature guide full of fun activities to do while exploring many different habitats; woodlands, meadows, streams, tide pools, and more.
Fill your journal with your thoughts, sketches, observations, and discoveries. You will find My Nature Journal in the Garden Shop Children's Corner.

Portulaca Sundial Series Mix This plant is a great summer annual that will add festive color to your poolside planters and make it feel like there is a party going on. The Sundial Series Mix comes in bright and pastel shades of red, cerise, rose, pink, orange, yellow, and white. The plants thrive in high temperatures, intense sunlight with occasional watering once established. It is not fussy about soil. They are attractive in rock gardens, parking strips, hanging baskets, or edgings. Plus, they don't require deadheading to prolong bloom. The plant grows to about 1 1/2' wide and 4 - 6" tall with a spreading habit. The flowers are 1 1/2" - 2" wide and will remind you of those paper flowers used to decorate at a Mexican fiesta. One of the best ways to enjoy all the attributes of this plant is to plant it in a strawberry pot.

Gomphrena Brighten your garden with this low growing plant which bears a mass of bright yellow, single daisy flowers throughout the summer. Ideal for informal gardens, cottage gardens, and containers. Sun, well drained soil and moderate to little watering, less than most annuals.

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